"Gozi... is dead?" Kion echoed. It was clear he couldn't believe this. "This can't be true."
"It's true," Fuli told him, bowing her head in grief. "I hope he finds peace.. and that he reunites with Kupenda in the stars."
[FLASHBACK]
Fuli walked alongside the rest of the Lion Guard. Gozi trotted along beside her. "So what are we gonna do today, Fuli?" He asked. Gozi was very upbeat and cheerful today. "I'm tired of all this walking!"
"Well, we could run around," Fuli suggested. "Okay!" Gozi agreed. "Race ya!" He dashed off quickly, kicking up dust in the Lion Guard's faces.
"Hapana..." Ono muttered, shaking his wings and face.
"C'mon guys, let's go!" Fuli called out after Gozi cheerfully. She ran after him, also in a good mood.
"Okay let's go!" Bunga exclaimed cheerfully.
They all raced off to follow Gozi.
Suddenly, they heard a screech. "AHHH HELP!" They heard Gozi cry out. Fear struck through Fuli as she imagined all the things that could be happening to her close friend. She dashed in the direction of his voice, running as fast as her paws could take her.
When she and the Guard got there, fear struck in their hearts at what they saw. It was Gozi, splayed out on the ground, bleeding due to a snake bite of a cobra.
Fuli gazed at the cobra with a death stare. Her gaze was filled with anger. She lunged at the cobra, claws outstretched. The cobra started at her with an evil eye before lunging back. The two animals engaged in a tussle, the cheetah being careful to avoid the venomous fangs of the cobra. Eventually, the cobra accidentally exposed it's neck. Fuli took this opportunity, and bit down hard on the cobra's neck, killing it.
She spat out the blood from the kill. She saw the Guard all staring at her, shocked. They were silenced from a glare from Fuli.
"Fuli..." Beshte began, "why did you kill that cobra?"
"'Why'?" Fuli echoed, outraged. "WHY?! BECAUSE IT KILLED GOZI!"
The Lion Guard went silent. The silence lingered in the air for what could have been eternity. Suddenly, that silence was broken by a whimper. They all turned around to see Gozi looking up at them with wide eyes. They all rushed over to him, Fuli laying down next to him.
There was an unspoken and dreadful thought, but it was never spoken. Gozi was dying. He'd be dead by nightfall.
"Is this it...?" Gozi asked them at he looked up at them with wide eyes. "Am I... dying?" Gozi didn't need an answer and started sobbing, his tears staining Fuli's fur.
Fuli cradled Gozi's head in her paws as he cried. "Shhh... It's okay, Gozi. Just close your eyes."
"No!" Gozi refused through his tears. "Please no!"
"I'm sorry, Gozi. I want to help... Makini's tried everything she could... I'm so sorry."
"No! Please! I don't wanna go! I wanna stay with you!" Gozi begged. Fuli shook her head.
"I'm afraid that's not my choice."
Another wave of tears came for both the cheetahs, along with the rest of the Lion Guard that surrounded them.
"We'll miss you Gozi," Beshte sniffed.
"Affirmative," Ono said sadly.
"Yep. You were a great friend," Anga agreed.
Bunga took in a deep breath as tears fell from his cheeks. "I hope you have fun, up there in the afterlife. We'll all miss you, little bro."
"Th-thank you. Can-" He was interrupted by a cough. "Can you all stay with me.. until..."
"Of course," Makini soothed. "We're all right here. We're not going anywhere."
"That's right, Little G," Beshte agreed. They all laid down beside him, offering words of encouragement to let go.
Gozi's vision appeared to be fading. He seemed terrified now. He held on tighter to Fuli. "Please don't let go... I don't wanna let go!" He begged them.
"I'm sorry..." More tears slid down Fuli's cheeks as she remembered Kion, another victim of a cobra. And now... Gozi was going through the same... if not worse.
"F-Fuli... I-... I just want to say... that I am so glad I met you all... and that I don't regret a thing."
"Thank you..." She nuzzled Gozi as tears fell down both their cheeks. The Guard were emotionally touched at this.
A long silence followed. "Fuli... I... it hurts to breath," he told her in between labored breaths. "My head hurts... my chest hurts... everything hurts.."
"I know..."
"Make it stop... please.. At least let me stay here..."
"I can't make your pain stop... and as much as I want to, I can't make you stay here with us... but I'm here for you." Fuli licked his cheek. "You were like the little brother I never had," she told him, meaning every word. "And I wish that you were my kin... instead of Mwepesi."
"Th-thank you Fuli." He hugged her tighter.
Gozi whimpered in pain and sorrow despite her efforts to calm him. "Shh," she soothed once more. "Go to sleep..." Tears poured down her face. "All pain will be gone when you wake up."
"But what if I don't wanna go to sleep?" Gozi asked through tears.
"Gozi..." For once, Fuli was lost for words. "Just... think about Kupenda. She'll be waiting for you."
Those words seemed to strike a chord in Gozi's heart, as he looked up to the sky and managed a small smile. "Kupenda.." Gozi then seemed to snap back to reality. He looked at the Guard. "But... I just want a little more time with you guys."
"I'm so sorry, Gozi. I wish I could change this..."
She got to her paws and gave him a lick on his forehead. "Goodbye, little brother.." She turned away, not being able to bear the pain.
Suddenly, lightning struck right between Gozi and the others. It caught fire on a dead tree. "Gozi!" Fuli cried. "Gozi!"
No response. This shocked more tears out of her and the Guard.
"Fuli! We have to get out of here!" Ono cried.
"He's right!" Beshte agreed. "We can't stay here much longer!"
"Hate to admit it, but they're right," Bunga also agreed. "Even I wouldn't stay here in a wildfire!"
"No, we can't! We've gotta find him!"
"No!" The Guard began to drag Fuli away, despite her pleading for otherwise.
"NO! PLEASE NO!"
[END OF FLASHBACK]
"I hope so too..." Kion bowed his head in grief. "But.. how did it happen?"
"He... He got bitten... by a cobra."
Kion gasped and his eyes filled with sympathy. Fuli let the tears fall from her eyes as Kion stepped forward to comfort her, also letting tears fall from his own.
"I miss him so much..." Fuli whimpered. Kion pressed his pelt against her in a comforting manner. The rain pattered against their fur, chilling them to an uncomfortable degree.
"What do we do now...?" Fuli asked through her tears. "Gozi's gone... I can't believe he's gone."
"I can't either," Kion replied sadly. "He was like a little brother to me."
"Me too," Fuli replied sadly. "I hope he finds peace..."
"Me too..."
The two felines looked up at the sky, the rain showing no sign of ending. "Let's get out of the rain," Kion suggested. "It'll do us no good to stay out here, shivering and soaking wet."
"Y-yeah," Fuli agreed, also shivering. "Let's go to that cave over there," Kion suggested, motioning with his paw to an abandoned cave in the distance.
"Okay." Fuli and Kion walked to the cave, both shivering due to the coldness of the pouring rain. The rest of the Lion Guard followed them, also hoping to get out of the rain. Once they were in the cave, each of them laid down and found different sleeping spots. Then, Bunga suddenly jumped up.
"Hey guys, guys. I just remembered!" He was momentarily silenced by the others' glares. "Hey, I know this might be a bad time, but tomorrow is Christmas!"
"How do you know, Little B?" Beshte asked doubtfully.
"I know because there's the bright star," Bunga explained, pointing from inside the cave to the brightest star in the sky
"I don't even feel like celebrating," Fuli told them negatively before curling up on her chosen sleeping spot.
"Me neither," Kion agreed then laid down too.
"Me neither!" The group said loudly before each laying down on their chosen sleeping spots.
"Okay... I get it," Bunga said understandingly.
Fuli shivered due to the freezing cold night. Kion moved closer to her and pressed his pelt against hers, keeping her warm. Fuli gave her a grateful glance. "Thanks," she said gratefully.
"No problem," Kion replied.
XXXX
Kion blinked open his eyes. It was still dark outside. He rose to his paws - today was Christmas. He knew because of the bright star in the sky. He was going to get a meal for Fuli for Christmas. After all, she probably hadn't had a good meal in a while now, with her grief along with all her pressures of being leader of the Lion Guard when the Guard had all thought Kion was dead.
He snuck out of the den, being careful not to wake anyone, especially Fuli. He walked along the desert, looking for prey. Sure is hard to find prey in the desert, he thought to himself. And it doesn't help that I'm a beginner at hunting.
Suddenly, he saw it. A stray gazelle, it's herd fairly far away from it. This is my chance! He crouched low to the ground, thinking to himself how hard the hunt would be without any grass to hide his golden pelt. He prayed to the Great Kings and Queens that his golden pelt would blend in with the sand.
He crept up on the gazelle, the latter not suspecting a thing. Closer... closer... He got in pouncing distance of the unsuspecting gazelle. Three... two... ONE! He pounced. The gazelle ran with him clutching onto it. It kicked him, luckily on his leg so it didn't injure him badly. He sunk his teeth into the gazelle's throat, ending it with a killing bite.
Once it was still, Kion noticed how scrawny and young it was. Guilt clawed at his heart as he realized he had taken a life of another animal. He quickly made an effort to push that guilt away. It's the Circle of Life, he told himself. Besides, if the prey didn't die, I wouldn't live. Besides, it's not as if such a beginner hunter like me could catch any better, he thought to himself, disappointed.
He dragged the scrawny gazelle back to the den where the Lion Guard made their temporary camp.
Once he got there, he saw Fuli sleeping, her sleep seeming bad as she was tossing and turning. Kion dragged the gazelle aside and payed attention to Fuli. "Gozi..." She was muttering. "I can save you... I can still save you..." She flinched, and Kion froze in place. He didn't disturb her for a little bit, fearing he might make it worse by waking her up. Not long after, she started talking in her sleep again. "No... he doesn't need to know... I have to protect him... I can't let him go through heartbreak again..."
Kion suddenly felt the urge to wake her up. "Fuli!" He shouted. "Wake up!" He started shaking her - not harshly so he wouldn't hurt her, but not too gentle either. She jumped up in shock, fur bristling.
"Get away!" She yelled but after a moment, her expression softened as she must have realized it was Kion, not whatever bad thing that might have been in her dream.
"Fuli, are you okay?" Kion asked softly. Fuli stared at him for a long moment. Her eyes clouded with an emotion that Kion couldn't read. She suddenly walked up to him and pressed her cheek against his.
"Don't go anywhere. Don't leave us. Please, we need you. I need you," Fuli begged. Her eyes clouded once more and they seemed to threaten to shed tears.
"What do you mean? I'm not going anywhere," Kion asked confused. Then, a realization hit him. "Fuli, did you have a nightmare?"
Fuli looked at him and slowly nodded. Kion gazed at her sympathetically. "Hey, it's okay." He nuzzled her in a comforting manner. Fuli then embraced him in a hug. "Don't worry," he heard her mutter quietly. "I'll protect you.."
"Protect me?" Kion echoed. "From what?"
Fuli quickly backed away. "You won't understand.."
"Try me," Kion pressed.
Fuli took in a deep breath. "I can't lose you. My parents were caring and kind to me when I was a tiny cub, and I lost them to evil. Gozi was like my little brother, and he died. I basically lost all my other friends in the Pride Lands when I left in this journey! I lost almost everyone that was important to me. I can't lose you too."
Kion's mind clouded with emotion. He didn't know Fuli was this protective over him. His heart swelled with gratitude along with with a determination to keep fighting - not just for himself, but for Fuli and all his friends too.
"I won't go anywhere," Kion assured her. "I'll fight it till my last breath."
"That's what I'm afraid of," Fuli told him. "You might die fighting it... fighting you. I don't want to lose you.
"You won't lose me," Kion tried to reassure her. "I won't lose this fight. I promise." That wasn't just a promise to Fuli. It was also a promise to himself. I won't lose this fight. I CAN'T lose this fight...! If I do... what will happen to Fuli and the Guard?
"Oh, also, merry Christmas," Kion said, hoping to take her mind off of her nightmare. Fuli managed a small smile. "Merry Christmas," she said.
Kion remembered the gazelle. "Oh, Fuli. I got you something for Christmas." He dragged the gazelle into view. He knew Fuli should be happy, but his pelt sparking with embarrassment anyway. "I'm sorry I couldn't catch something better, I-"
Fuli cut him off. "Thank you, Kion," she said gratefully. "I got something for you too." She pawed a couple of sticks tied together with vines and leaves towards him. Kion tilted his head in confusion.
"It's something that helped me sleep at night whenever I had nightmares. I figured it'd help you too, now that you have them a lot." She smiled softly at him. "I know it's not much, but-"
She was cut off by Kion pressing his pelt against hers. "Thank you Fuli."
"Your welcome," Fuli purred. A tiny yawn escaped Kion - he was tired from the hunt. Even though it would be an easy kill for a normal hunter, he was just learning. "Someone's tired," Fuli joked. Kion playfully rolled his eyes. "Haha, very funny."
He laid down with Fuli's gift next to him. "I can see you're tired," Fuli said. "We'll eat the gazelle together when it's daytime."
"Okay Fuli," he mumbled tiredly. He started to fall asleep again, but was woken out of his almost-sleep trance when he heard a noise. He lifted his head and saw it was Fuli sniffling.
"Fuli, are you alright?" He asked worriedly. Fuli turned to face him. "I just really miss him..." She sniffed.
"I do to," Kion said sorrowfully, bowing his head in grief.
"I don't wanna sleep alone..." Fuli said awkwardly. "Can I sleep with you. I know it's awkward and I understand if-"
"No, no, it's okay," Kion told her. "You can sleep with me if you want."
"Thanks," Fuli thanked him. She pressed his pelt against his, purring. They both fell asleep soon, nothing disturbing them the whole night.